Short Story 1: The Role Dan Plays
by MarioMaster2008
Summary: The tale of the guy that drempt big.


Hi. My name is Dan. Don't pretend you know who I am....no one does anymore.

All I wanted to do was make a decent living in life. You know, good pay, a wife and kids, maybe? That's not so much to ask, is it?

But the years have come and gone, and that's not the way things worked out.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's go back....back when times were well....

*5 years earlier*

"Dan!" said my manager, Glen, his eyes glittering "That was a _spectacular _performance! Why, you'll make the headlines of all the local papers!"

"Was I really that good?" I said, stepping out the back door of the theater to avoid getting the patron's attention.

"Of course you were, Dan!" Glen was so happy he could have lifted me in the air...but that wasn't the case with me.

"I just don't know..." I said, with an unsure tone "Acting like this is okay, on a small stage in a small town theater, the crowd sitting there, cheering wildly, but I want to be _bigger! _I want to be a household name--people will see my plays and say 'That's Dan at his best!' I wanna go places! I wanna be known in the biggest parts of Hollywood! And soon enough, I'm going to do it! You'll see!"

"Sure you will, Dan." Glen said, supportively "I know you will."

I went home, and Glen rode away in his car, the rust bucket it was--I'm surprised he can drive that thing without it falling apart into a pile of brown, rusted over gears and bolts...

But I digress. My house wasn't all that great either--chipped paint, the roof leaks, one of the taps don't work, and you can't flush the upstairs toilet, but hey, it's a roof over my head, right? It just needed a little work.

The problem with that was that I had no real free time to myself, what with all the plays I was doing recently. _Hamlet_, _The Children's Hour_, _A Streetcar Named Desire_, I had done them all, and fitting this acting job in with other things isn't always so easy.

I sat on my sofa, torn up by the cat, loose cotton everywhere, and sighed.

I picked up a screenplay starring Uta Hagen, and began to read.

The phone rang after a few minutes. Startled, I snapped into reality and picked up the receiver.

"Hello?" I asked "Who is this?"

"Dan, it's me." came Glen's voice through the other end.

"Oh, hi, Glen. What's new?"

"I found something that might interest you."

"Oh? And what's that?" I was somewhat hesitant. Glen was an all right manager, but he wasn't the best at what he does.

"The people at the local civic center are doing a performance of _Twelve Angry Men_, and they want you to be the star!"

"Hmm...all right, Glen, I may as well try out for it."

"That's the spirit, Dan! You'll do great, I'm sure of it!"

"When does this production occur, anyway?"

"In about a month. Why do you ask?"

"Because that gives me enough time to attend a quick course!" I said, my pessimistic attitude somewhat diminishing.

"I don't know, Dan..." Glen started, trailing off.

"Oh, come on, Glen--you and I both know there's room for improvement. Remember when I screwed up that scene in _Romeo and Juliet_?"

Glen groaned "Let's not get into that again..."

"Then it's settled. I'm taking that course, and then I'll do the performance."

Glen sighed. He knew I was stubborn--there was no talking me out of something once I had my mind set on it.

"Very well. I'll send you the script so you can read over it when you get the chance."

"Thanks. Good bye, Glen."

"Good luck, Dan."

Glen hung up the phone.

Dial tone emitting from the receiver, I dialled a number.

"Hello? Yes, I'd like to enrol in a class."

Later, after a long following day, I entered my house to find that my professor had sent me a message. I pressed a button on my answering machine.

"Hi, Dan. You were marvellous today--" came the voice of my professor "--and we would like to have you be the lead role in our skits tomorrow. You don't have to, but at least consider it."

"You have **0 **new messages." came the machine's automated, robotic voice.

I was, in fact, happy back then. I had the roles I dreamed of, I had fame--sure, the house and some other things in my life needed work, but for me, this was as close as I'd gotten to being truly happy...and it's looking like this is as close and I'll ever get....

The course went all right from then on, and I even learned a few things about projection of one's voice. My life was improving, for once.

Then came the night of the performance...or rather, what _would have been _the night of the performance.

I came home that afternoon, and the phone rang moments after I got inside.

"Hold on, hold on, I'm coming--" I said to no one in particular, though my cat was also striving for my attention at that time.

"Hello?" I said at last, picking up the phone.

"Dan...I'm sorry...they've recast the star of _Twelve Angry Men_..."

"What?!" I said, shocked "But there are no other jobs around! _Speed the Plough _was cast months ago! This was the only shot I had at the big time!"

"Believe me, Dan, this hurts me as much as it hurts you." Glen said, reassuringly "But I can get you another job."

"You can?" I said, beaming a little.

"Yes...but it's a full time job. You'll have to give up acting to maintain it."

I was silent for a while. I had to pay the rent, not to mention fix the house. I needed the money, and still, I loved the acting job.

"Dan? _Dan? _Are you there?" Glen asked, worriedly.

"Yeah..." I said, swallowing hard.

Then I came to a decision.

"....Okay. What's the job?" I asked.

"You'd work as a tour guide at Walt Disney World." Glen answered.

Again, silence fell. Then, finally, I said "....All right. Sign me up."

"You'll have the papers in about a week." Glen said, then adding "Dan...I really don't know what to say..."

"It's okay, Glen. We all gotta do something, right? ...Look, I just gotta clear my head. I'm sorry, I gotta go."

"I understand. Good luck, Dan." Glen hung up the phone.

And so I took the cat for a walk, but there was only one thing on my mind that night, and the nights to come.

"How can I give up acting? I used to love it...now I must cast it away, like dust in the wind? This isn't fair..." I thought, stressed out.

But there was nothing I could do about it. My acting career was dead, and that was that.

About a week later, I signed up to the new job.

"You'll be known as Skipper Dan." started my new boss "You'll be the guide for the Jungle Cruise ride. You shall have a scripted route throughout the tour, for crowds of visitors."

I sighed. "If I must..."

I took the script, and began my new job.

There's not much to say now. My career is dead, and I don't enjoy my new job at all...but it's all I can do. Day in, day out, it's the same old thing now. I've read this script at least a hundred times, and the corny jokes are getting on my nerves, but I have to do it if I want my paycheque.

I'm caught in a bind, and life will never be what it once was. I won't be known for plays in Hollywood. I won't be a household name. I'll never be the man I once was, performing for screaming crowds...

From now on, I'll only be known as the person whose life has been eternally ruined...

Skipper Dan.

The End

watch?v=C56rvOr9cmA


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